Mainstay Veterinary Practice — Local services in Merrifield

Website says they are compassionate, however don't believe it. Unfortunately poor owner management/administration compromise any good the vets try to accomplish. "Blaine" who's is listed as the owner goes by Beth here, puts financial goals ahead of compassionate care for clients and their pets. She will criticize customers who dare to post reviews. Then she attaches reviews to your pet's record to intimidate you from posting anything and to keep other vets from helping you. How vindictive. Wow. I'm pretty sure the The Virginia Board of Veterinary wouldn't consider a Yelp review part of the pet record. Everyone knows this isn’t how to manage social media. Word of mouth is everything.

My initial experience at this vet was a splenectomy by Dr. Mahon February 2025. At that time, my dog Emma also had an infection on her toes. Oddly, when Dr. Mahon looked at her toes, she recommended they be amputated, that is was probably cancer. She asked more than once if I wanted to cut her toes off. I was a bit surprised by her insisting but declined to have her toes removed. Never did she offer to take a culture of her toe infection. We agreed to try an antibiotic to clear up the toes. The splenectomy went well. Fast forward to now. Emma had developed a severe rash on her belly. I came to Mainstay and they recommended a culture, total cost $645. Getting the results was harrowing. Dr. Mahon sent an alarming 7pm Thursday email about lab culture results. Stating she would be out of town until the following Tuesday. She said my Emma's infection was very contagious to both me and my dogs. To wash everything she touches weekly and to wash my hands every time I touch her. She said the best was to cure her infection was a regimen of 10 pills a day and a skin cream twice a day. She listed all scary side effects including permanent damage to my dog’s eyes. That I should start this protocol right away. And, I could call for assistance if needed. When I did call I was told it would be an additional $80 since I was asking for a second opinion. (huh?) The receptionist was unkind and not the least bit compassionate. Frustrated and scared, I agreed to $80 more and spoke with a Dr. Horton who was curt and put off.

Blaine however takes no responsibility for her vet's or staff's rude behavior and tries to blame me. They seemed to have a very targeted focus on how much money they could charge me for just a little assistance and explanation.

After being on 10 pills a day, Emma had vomiting, lethargy, and weak legs, she could hardly stand up. Dr Mahon recommended I come in saying that wasn't a normal reaction to Chloramphenicol. During this visit Dr. Mahon decided that her weak legs were because she wasn't eating (nausea) and gave me an anti-nausea and appetite stimulant medicine. I spent another $300 to help my poor dog. After two days nothing changed. Desperate, I did a quick Google search: "Chloramphenicol: side effects of nausea, loss of appetite, and vomiting are common…some dogs have developed a rear limb paresis... It resolves when treatment is stopped". How could Dr. Mahon not know this??

As I reveiwed my experience with Mainstay, I recalled Dr. Mahon wanting to amputate my dog's toes. Thinking, how that toe infection likely caused the one on her belly by her scratching herself. Had a culture been done in February, it's likely she would never have had an infection on her belly. Then I realized, they are not about care, they are about profit. And I really do questions Dr. Mahon's competence as a vet.

Don't risk your pets safety and health to Mainstay. There are so many other vets out there. You can find better care, better customer service and peace of...

Update: MVP's response to my review is making the point for me. Blaine is working only with half-truths and refuses to accept the word of a long time loyal and paying customer. It's true I did resort to removing the cyst at home (first and only time) as a result of treatment not being offered during my visit with Dr. Chamarande, which they freely admit in their response. It makes zero sense, why would I come in for the appointment and pay the money just to tell them I'd rather do it at home. It's just an example of their stonewalling nature and refusal to admit any mistake on their part. They go on in their response to accuse me of being rude which is certainly false and the first time I'm hearing that in 5 years of doing business with them. I guess if you advocate for your pet and ask questions they consider it "condescending." Again, just another example of them attributing only positive experiences to themselves and any negative experience must be the fault of the customer. After my visit I politely notified them I'd be taking my business elsewhere but they make it sound like the other way around.

I agree with the recent review by Robin F, the owner Blaine is arrogant and rude. I've been taking my dog to MVP the last five years and had mostly wonderful experiences when Dr. Hitt was there running things, but apparently Dr. Hitt has now left the practice for good and Blaine is the owner. Blaine practically called me a liar when I complained that one of their doctors, Dr. Chamarande, offered no treatment for my dog's bleeding cyst but merely commented "I'm not worried about it" even though my dog kept licking at it and was getting worse. Not to mention he had 4 identical cysts previously that were all simply removed surgically. Plus Dr. Chamarande spent most of the visit telling me about her own dog's problems which isn't what I'm paying for. So when I brought this up to Blaine she said Dr. C did offer surgical treatment when in fact she did not. Blaine wasn't there at the visit, I was so she doesn't know anything. I guess Dr. C misrepresented facts in order to spare her own embarrassment for not offering treatment. Blaine refused to take me at my word even though that was my only complaint in 5 years but hey I guess she's under the impression her doctors are perfect and never make mistakes. The other doctors I've seen there are good but I would avoid Blaine and Dr. Chamarande,...

Our family has been with the MVP clinic since July of 2021 and we were very happy with it until today... Today we had a very disappointing experience with the clinic.

Specifically, the MVP's receptionist Carina was exceptionally unfriendly and disrespectful with me and my sister. Not only was Carina unwilling to accommodate a follow-up appointment for our sick cat, but she also did not seem to care or pay attention as to what either of us was saying about cat’s symptoms or our family arrangements. On the top of it, not having a veterinary training herself, Carina seemed to be making determinations as to which symptoms mattered and which ones didn’t, when relaying them to the doctor. In the past, we were always able to get our cats be seen and examined by the doctor at the MVP clinic when in need of medical attention. No medical conclusions as to the severity of their condition were ever made by a receptionist via a phone. Such a lack of care and professionalism is truly shocking in this line of work.

The MVP's website says: "Our name is indicative of our commitment to be a main support system for the “furry” members of your family. You can depend on us to give you the best veterinary care and advice to ensure the utmost health of your pets." Today, you fell short of your commitment to be a main support system for our family member and giving us the best veterinary care.

Having a sick cat, who is your family member, is a very stressful experience by itself. But not having any support from a veterinary clinic in such a time of need is absolutely devastating.

Regretfully, we’ll be leaving this clinic and seeking care where pets and their families are treated with care...